Many are familiar with Stone Lab, The Ohio State University’s island campus on Lake Erie, but very few know about the laboratory’s namesake, Franz Theodore Stone. Who was this historical figure, and what’s the history behind the lab’s name?

The family history is well-known to Bruce Stone, Franz’s great-great-grandson, who now serves as the president of the Friends of Stone Laboratory’s board. This year marks an important milestone for the laboratory: in 1925, Franz’s son, prolific businessman Julius F. Stone, donated Gibraltar Island to Ohio State. Julius never liked to have his name on anything, so he elected to name the lab after his late father instead.

“It’s been wonderful to be associated with Stone Lab,” said Bruce. “When I wear my hat that has the logo on it, I get stopped all the time. And then when I tell them I’m a Stone, then people really want to know more.”

Franz Theodore Stone, the laboratory’s namesake, was born in Prussia in 1813 and worked as a professor and astrophysicist at the University of Koenigsburg. There, he also served as an assistant to Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel — the first person to accurately measure the distance between the sun and another star. In the 1840s, Franz left Europe due to persecution and bought a parcel of land to farm in Michigan.

A little-known fact about Franz: he was actually born with the surname “von Stein” and only changed it to the anglicized “Stone” once in America, to avoid persecution, Bruce said.

“Stone Laboratory is named for him, but the real mover and shaker that created this was his son, Julius Stone,” Bruce said. “Here, we’re talking about somebody that we think of being a modern guy, because he passed away in 1947, but he was born when Franklin Pierce was president. His brother got wounded in the Civil War, and he was alive when Lincoln was shot. So if you add all that stuff up, he lived through quite a stretch of history.”

Born in 1855 and raised in abject poverty, Julius started working as a telegraph operator for a railroad at the age of 12. He later worked for and led the Sunday Creek Coal Company and founded the Seagrave Corporation, a maker of fire engines. He was well known as a manufacturer, conservationist, and author, and he was a longtime member of Ohio State’s Board of Trustees, also serving as its president.

Julius only briefly grew up knowing that his father had a love of astronomy, as Franz died before he was 6 years old, but it made an impact.

“Julius remembered lying on his back in the summertime and looking up at the stars at night, with his father pointing out all the constellations,” Bruce said. “This is how he got his love of astronomy and science.”

Throughout his life, Julius made many philanthropic efforts to benefit the physical sciences. Stone Lab, however, was his first opportunity to benefit the biological sciences.

In 1925, Julius purchased Gibraltar Island from the Barney family and immediately presented it to Ohio State to be used for its Lake Laboratory, which had been founded in 1895 and previously operated on South Bass Island. After this donation, the university constructed Gibraltar Island’s Stone Laboratory Building, Dining Hall, Stone Cottage, and Gibraltar House.

“This is all about the science, and that’s what Julius wanted. That’s what led him to it,” Bruce said of his great-grandfather. “Aside from being extremely successful and unbelievably hardworking, he was a national figure that didn’t want to be a national figure. He wanted zero notoriety, and yet he did these things that drew notice.”

Despite the family association, Bruce didn’t grow up familiar with Stone Lab. It was only after his father, Franz Theodore Stone III, passed away that he became interested in Julius’ life, started pouring through his archives at Ohio State, and got involved in the laboratory.

“As I’m going through the letters of Julius’s, there’s a letter from the Board of Trustees to his wife after his passing,” Bruce said. “The letter said, we’re sorry for his passing. We want you to understand that you or anybody in your family can use Stone Cottage (on Gibraltar Island) anytime you want. I’m like, well, that’s my great-grandfather. I’m family.”

Bruce caused quite a shock when he presented the letter to staff at Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Lab’s offices. Nancy Cruikshank, former development coordinator, spoke with Bruce and put him in contact with Dr. Jeff Reutter, the program’s director at the time.

“We had a great conversation, and they said, listen, we need to get you up to the lab,” Bruce said. “Once you see how they run the place, how involved they are, and the level of dedication that all these biologists and teachers and administrators have, it’s really compelling. I wanted to be a part of it.”

From there, Bruce became involved with the Friends of Stone Lab (FOSL), a volunteer group that supports Stone Lab research, education and outreach efforts. Since its inception in 1982, FOSL has aided in the creation of several philanthropic funds and endowments, purchased equipment such as microscopes, computers, and sampling equipment, and supported the student experience through scholarships, fellowships, and research experiences.

“Bruce’s dedication to his namesake is amazing, and it’s passionate people like him who will help Stone Lab spark science education and research in our communities for the next 100 years,” said Dr. Chris Winslow, director of Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Lab.

Ohio Sea Grant is supported by The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) School of Environment and Natural Resources, Ohio State University Extension, and NOAA Sea Grant, a network of 34 Sea Grant programs nation-wide dedicated to the protection and sustainable use of marine and Great Lakes resources. Stone Laboratory is Ohio State’s island campus on Lake Erie and is the research, education, and outreach facility of Ohio Sea Grant and part of CFAES School of Environment and Natural Resources.